Creating a fair and sustainable care and support system

The Government today welcomed the report from the independent commission chaired by Andrew Dilnot as a valuable contribution to meeting the long term challenge of an ageing population.

The Commission on the Funding of Care and Support, established by the Government last July, has set out a number of important recommendations about how, as a society, we organise and fund social care.

The Government will consider each recommendation carefully to test whether it meets the wider objectives for reform, including increased personalisation, choice and quality, closer integration of health and social care and greater prevention and early intervention.

The Commission recognises that implementing its reforms would have significant costs, which the Government will need to consider against other calls on constrained resources.

Reform of care and support is not only about funding. The Government wants to create a social care system that offers people and their carers choice and personalised, high quality care.

We will be engaging with the care sector over the autumn to develop and refine our priorities and plans for action, bearing in mind the financial context.

Following this engagement, we will publish a White Paper on wider social care issues next spring, and a progress report on funding reform.

Health Secretary Andrew Lansley said:

“By 2026, the number of 85 year olds is projected to double. Increasing life expectancy is a good thing, but with it can come an increasing need for care and support. Many older people will require care and support and there will be growing numbers whose needs for care can't be met or for whom the cost will be high.

“Most people do not know that half of 65 year olds will need care costing more than £20,000, while one in ten will have care needs costing over £100,000. We must develop a care and support system that is fair, affordable and sustainable for the long term.

“I welcome the Commission's report and thank Andrew Dilnot and the other commissioners for their detailed work on this complex issue. This is a multi-faceted problem and we know that we cannot look at funding in isolation. We need to take this opportunity to create a system that provides high quality, personalised care and gives people more choice and control over their own care.

”I now want to engage with those most closely involved in the care and support system to ensure we get these reforms right. I remain fully committed to pursuing reform in this Parliament so people can get the care they deserve when they need it.”

Care Services Minister, Paul Burstow said:

“Andrew Dilnot has worked hard for a year to come up with his recommended solution on funding. He has made it clear that this solution comes with a price tag for Government. It's right that we take the time to consider his solution and the trade-offs here, particularly in light of the current economic climate.

“Who pays for care is just one of the questions the Government's reforms of social care must address. There are issues of quality and choice, making sure care and health work together and simplifying our care laws to make it easier for people to get the help they need. That is why we will be working with a wide range of stakeholders as we develop a White Paper to address these wider issues.”